Liquid fuel burner plate



July 14, 1959 L. 0. sum;

LIQUID FUEL BURNER PLATE Filed July 19, 1955 .isii 0 v12 III" Illll/ v 23 a 23 A INVENTOR LY NH O 5 E LBY ATTORN Y United States Patent 6 LIQUID FUEL BURNER PLATE Lynn O..Selby, Old Saybrook, Conn. Application July 19, 1955, Serial No. 522,982

4.Claims. .(Cl.158--88) This invention relates to oil burners and particularly to fuel supplying and distributing means to the annular wicks of the burner from a central fuel admitting conduit.

An object of importance of the invention ,is to provide a burner plate, against the upper recessed surface of which the annular wicks rest, the plate being provided with downward sloping radial conduits from a central slightly raised platform to which the liquid fuel is supplied under control of any preferred form of fuel regulator.

Another object of the invention is to provide a burner plate for a liquid fuel burner which will prevent the accumulation of the liquid fuel in a position where it may become inadvertently ignited.

A feature of importance of the invention is that the plate has a central horizontal area and annular grooves for the wicks, the grooves being disposed slightly below the central area and intercepting radiating channels ex tending from the central area.

Another object of a preferred embodiment of the invention is to position the annular grooves surrounding the central elevated area at slightly different elevations, the innermost groove being slightly lower than the intermediate groove, and the outermost groove being slightly higher than the intermediate groove, all of the grooves being slightly below the elevated central area.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention includes the features of construction and operation set forth in the following specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawing.

In the accompanying drawing annexed hereto and forming a part of this specification, I have shown the inven tion embodied in a liquid fuel burner for heating breeders and the area adjacent thereto but it will be understood that the invention may be otherwise embodied and that the drawing is not to be construed as defining or limiting the scope of the invention, the claims appended to this specification being relied upon for that purpose.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a partial plan view of a burner plate made in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a side view partly in elevation and partly in section of the burner plate shown in Fig. 1, the section being taken on the plane of line '22 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view on the plane of line 33 in Fig. l; and

Fig. 4 is a view taken on a plane in similar position to Fig. 3 of a slightly modified and improved form of the invention.

In the above mentioned drawing, there has been shown but two embodiments of the invention which are now deemed preferable, but it is to be understood that changes and modifications may be made within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Referring more in detail to the figures of the drawing it will be seen that the burner plate comprises an integral casting or other metal member 10 to which liquid fuel ice may be supplied from a suitable source from a connection 12 depending from the central portion 14 of the plate. As shown in Fig. 2, this depending portion is hollow or provided with a bore and extends to the upper hor izontal central area 14 of the plate. The lower end of this projection 12 may be threaded as shown at 16 and connected to a fuel supply line and regulator (not 'showna. As the means for supplying the liquid fuel to the burner plate 10 forms no part of the present invention, it is not thought that any description thereof will be necessary. It will be understood, however, that the fuel will be admitted to the central area 14 of the burner plate under the control of a suitable regulating or float valve (not shown) preferably operating thermostatically.

From an inspection of Fig. 2 it will be seen that radial channels 18 are provided extending from the central area 14 0f the plate 10 to a wall 20 extending about the outer periphery of the plate. The slope of these radially extend- :i-ng channels 18 is downward from the central area 14 of the plate so that the fuel supplied from central conduit 12 may flow outwardly and downward to the lower edges of the successive annular wicks 22.

As shown in the figures of the drawing, there are three concentric annular wicks 22 disposed in vertical position in annular grooves 23 formed in the plate around the central area 14 of the plate. Also as shown, the wicks 22 are disposed between concentric vertical sleeves 24 perforated throughout their cylindrical surfaces to permit circulation of combustion supporting air. To sup port the sleeves 24 in position their lowermost edges rest on ledges 26 formed concentrically in the plate 10. Between pairs of the sleeves 24 the annular wicks 22 are placed which extend downwardly far enough to have their lower edges or portions extend below the surface of the liquid fuel within the radial channels.

With the fuel channels 18 radiating from and extending downward from a central portion 14 of the plate 10, the fuel cannot accumulate at the central portion of the plate for the reason that this portion 14 forms an elevated flat surface from which the fuel flows directly into the radial channels 18. Fuel supplied vertically upward from the central conduit 12 passes over the central portion 14 in an extremely thin layer or film and enters the inner ends of the radially extending channels 18. The channels 18 intercept the annular grooves 23 for the wicks 22 so that the liquid fuel can directly come in contact with the material of the wicks 22. In this embodiment of the invention the bottom surfaces of the grooves 23 are at the same elevation.

By reference to Fig. 3 it will be seen that the area 14 at the central portion of the plate is elevated slightly above the lower surfaces of annular grooves 23 into which the wicks extend. Liquid fuel supplied from the con nection 12 passes directly to the radial passages 18 and to the circular grooves 23 where it is absorbed by the wicks without accumulating at the elevated center area 14.

Fig. 4 shows a modified form of the invention in which the elevation of the grooves 23 into which the wicks 22 are positioned is varied. Each successive groove being slightly higher than the groove nearer the center of the plate. The innermost groove is lowermost, the intermediate groove slightly higher than the innermost groove and the outermost groove being higher than the intermediate groove. The central elevated area 14 preferably is slightly higher than the outermost groove. By this variation in elevation of the grooves, when the supply of liquid fluid is greatly reduced by action of the temperature control for the burner, the supply will first be reduced to the outermost groove 23 then reduced to the intermediate groove and last of all will be reduced to the innermost groove. The innermost and smallest wick, therefore, will be kept burning when the fuel supply is reduced to the lowest possible amount.

The inner wick therefore will operate as a pilot burner and will remain lighted when the other wicks have had their fuel supply cut off and have been completely eX tinguished. When the fuel supply is again increased, the intermediate wick again will be rekindled and finally if the fuel supply is further increased the outermost Wick will be rekindled. By having the innermost groove lower than the other two grooves, the burner will keep burning with a smaller amount of fuel than if arranged as shown in Fig. 3 in which case the supply to all wicks is simultaneously and substantially equally reduced.

I claim as my invention:

1. A burner plate for a liquid fuel burner comprising an integral plate having a substantially horizontal and flat central area, fuel supply means to said area, annular grooves surrounding said central area adapted to receive Wicks therein, continuously outwardly and downwardly inclined channels extending radially from said center area, said channels intercepting each of said annular grooves, said grooves having an outwardly increased distance from the bottoms of said channels, and said central area being above any portion of the bottom surfaces of said grooves.

2. A burner plate according to claim 1, wherein concentric perforated metal sleeves project vertically from said plate at said grooves in upward extension of the lateral walls thereof.

3. A burner plate according to claim 2, wherein ridges are formed in said lateral walls to support said vertically projecting metal sleeves.

4. A burner plate according to claim 1, wherein the bottom surface of each of said annular grooves is disposed successively above the next adjacent inwardly positioned groove.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,985,920 Elliot et a1. Jan. 1, 1935 2,015,434 Miller Sept. 24-, 1935 2,055,462 Baker et a1. Sept. 29, 1936 2,067,666 Jungers Jan. 12, 1937 2,125,166 Jensen July 26, 1938 2,568,321 Coscia Sept. 18, 1951 

